Godslaying Demon
by Starlight in Twilight
Summary: Yet ANOTHER Rose fic. Go me. More Black Monster than Rose, though. Covers the slaughter of Neet to the attack on the St. Louvia, then from the beginning of the game to the battle of Hoax. PG-13 for violence.
1. Part 1: Flames of Neet

Author: Shadow's Hand

Title: Godslaying Demon

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: Nope. Rose belongs to The Legend of Dragoon, which belongs to Sony. I just love to write about her.

Rose walked onto a small bluff above the village of Neet, waiting calmly for night to fall. She always hunted by night, as the blood red light of the Moon seemed somehow fitting as she slew its child and spilled the blood of innocents. No. Not innocents. Servants to the God of Destruction by now, as the Moon Child was undoubtedly here. Or had been. Add to the innate power that turns people to serve Soa's will the fact that she was these people's beloved princess....All of Mille Seasue would rise up to aid the birth of the Virage Embryo, unwittingly but willingly destroying themselves and the rest of Endiness. Glancing up, she noticed there were heavy clouds to the east, still far off, but gaining quickly. Stormclouds. They would be upon Neet by late afternoon tomorrow, snuffing whatever bit of dark fire remained after the deed was done.

The dark warrior remembered something. How very, very appropriate. It was on this very day, 11,556 years ago, the evil known as Melbu Frahma was vanquished....And the lives of her friends, of her troops, of her enemies, and most of all, her love, were taken away. 

With a toss of her raven hair and a small snarl, she cut off those thoughts before they could lead to where she knew they eventually would. There was no way she could bear those thoughts of despair and anguish, not when the monster was barely being restrained. "When night falls....Then, and only then, will I allow my emotions to fuel my actions." Came the quiet remark. She sighed slightly. "Might as well get some sleep. Nothing much better to do." Rose grasped a nearby tree branch with her left hand and swung up, arranging herself comfortably with her sword in her hand.

~~::{Dream}::~~

_"Rose!" _

~What?~

_"Rose!"_

~Who...?~

_"ROSE! Wake up!"_

Her eyes opened; she could feel it. But nothing changed. It was still darkness, darker than anything she had ever seen. It wasn't HER darkness, the kind she commanded with ease. It was foreign, malevolent....Perhaps even frightening.

_"I told you to wake up! Come on already!"_

~But I am awake....My eyes are open.~

A sigh. "Rose, just because you think your eyes are open does mean they truly ARE. And just because your eyes are open doesn't mean you're awake."

Only one person could be that philosophical. ~Syuveil...? But...You're dead.~

"Too true. I'm merely trying to warn you. You need to awaken, before it is too late."

~I don't understand....~

"My time here is up. Sorry, Rose. Bye."

~Syuveil! Wait!~

_"Come visit me sometime."_

~SYUVEIL!~

~~::{End Dream}::~~

Rose awoke with a start. The dream she had experienced was fading fast from memory, as was the daylight from the sky. ~It is time!~ A voice from somewhere inside her screamed.

"Not yet. Just a little longer."

Sullen quiet met her spoken response. Nodding, Rose watching the sky fade from pink to blue, and finally, to deep purple. The moon that always hung in the sky began to glow more fiercely red, signaling that it was time.

~NOW! It is time now!~

Rose sighed. "Yes, it is time." 

The hated demon that lived inside her flesh rose to the surface, hungry for blood. Her Darkness dragoon spirit changed from a deep blue/purple to darkest crimson, the color of spilled blood in the moonlight. The armor of the legendary Dragoon formed on her body, then abruptly changed to the horrific armor of the Black Monster, ending with her sunset wings disappearing and being replaced by dark flames. Blinking slightly glowing eyes, the demon that was once called 'Rose' flew out to Neet, anticipating the death and destruction that would begin there in earnest. 

A woman down in the village screamed and pointed up. She was immediately consumed by black fire, followed quickly by several others. Gliding low to the ground, the monster ignited the wooden buildings with a single thought. Several knights came running towards her. She torched all but one and grabbed him by the throat. "Where is she!?" The demon's harsh voice rang out. "Where is the princess!? The chance to kill the Moon Child comes only every 108 years, when the moon glows a blood color!"

"We will never give you Princess Louvia! AHHHHH!" The soldier was consumed in the dark flames and thrown to the side. The demon torched everything in sight, until, on a whim, she came to a small house in the center of the village.

She could hear, over the crackle of the flames and screams of the people, a young girl speaking in a panicked voice, and her mother's calm answer. The Black Monster threw open the door of their house and the woman became wide-eyed with fright. The little girl did nothing but complain about the heat and dark. Catching a glimpse of the girl's eyes, a small shred of Rose came to the surface, whispered ~She is blind....Spare her.~ and was quickly smashed by the demon. "Where are you hiding the Moon Child!?"

The mother looked at her in defiance. "We will never tell you!"

"Do you wish to die with your daughter?"

With a pained look filled with hatred, the mother nodded. "Princess Louvia has taken to the sea. Now leave our village!" Those words were her last, as she, too, died by the hand of the demon, leaving an orphaned and blind daughter behind.

The entire village was burning. The demon prepared to leave, knowing her task was finished, when a blonde man ran up to her, sword in hand. Turning to face this pitiful human, the demon was shocked. He looked like Zieg! But Zieg was dead, and damn this man for bringing him to mind! Snarling in fury, the monster prepared to dispatch him when a woman, obviously his wife by the way he told her to go back, to stay with their son. She went first, exactly like all the others, except that instead of burning from the outside, then in, the woman's internal organs caught fire first, then spread to her outer flesh. "CLAIRE! How dare you, you monster!" The man shrieked at her as the demon smirked. Suddenly a red light flared, and when it died, the man who so reminded her of Zieg was gone. Without a backward look, the Black Monster flew into the lightening sky, in the direction of Illisa Bay, leaving only two children and the ashes of a village.

~*End of Part 1 – Flames of Neet*~

AN: This is just going to be a little bitty two-parter, maybe kinda as an epilogue to Sliced Strings. I dunno. And yes, I know, I'm obsessed. So sue me. *Shrugs* Read and review please. Constructive criticism is ALWAYS welcomed.


	2. Part 2: Watery Grave of the St Louvia

The Dragoon transformation ended not far from Neet, in the Evergreen Forest. As it faded, Rose returned to control, burying the demon not so far from the surface. Momentarily overwhelmed by the outpouring of emotions she usually kept locked deep inside, she staggered sideways and caught herself against a tree. "Gods...I will never get used to this." A sigh. She pushed herself back upright, knowing she had only around 10 hours to build up her strength again. With a toss of her hair, the Darkness Dragoon made her way through the forest, annihilating enemies as she went. 

The sun was nearing zenith, the time when Rose was her weakest. Finding a quite large tree in the back of the forest that offered a lot of shade, she sat at the foot of the giant tree and pulled out some food. After she ate, the young woman once again settled down to sleep.

The Dragon Buster resting easily inside his cloak, Lloyd Frahma made his way through the Evergreen Forest, not quite knowing where he was headed. He needed funding and support for his ideals, but where to find it, the Wingly didn't have a clue. He had spent most of his considerable life in New Kadessa, the Wingly city to the east.

Getting into that pitiful forest had been easy. Nightfall had brought a relaxing of the guard, and slipping through that pathetic magical barrier and disposing with the Wingly youth standing guard had been painfully simple. Using the mind control that was the legacy of both his grandfathers, he controlled the sleeping 'Ancestor' and made him open the doorway to the ancient ruins of Kadessa, allowing him to claim the Dragon Buster as his own.

Lloyd chuckled to himself. 'Sometimes,' he thought, 'being the heir to both Melbu Frahma and the Magician Faust is a GOOD thing.'

Lloyd had found himself in the very back of the forest. His eyes widened as she spotted a seemingly young Human woman, asleep between the roots of the great tree. He shook his head, thought to himself 'I can't linger here!' and ran back the way he came, until he was almost to Furni. For he had glimpsed a round, dark stone hanging around the warrior's neck on a necklace, a stone he had only seen in history books. The Dragoons had returned to Endiness.

Rose awoke in the late afternoon. After another quick bite to eat and a couple more hours of monster-slaying, the daylight was waning again and Rose was back to full strength. With a sigh, she let the darker side of her consciousness come forward, the side she had dubbed the "demon". A harsh cry of anticipation was torn from her throat as the Black Monster flew off in the direction of Illisa Bay.

The lookout in the crow's nest saw her first. She looked as something from a nightmare, a beautiful woman's face wreathed in black flames. He screamed, she smiled, and he was the first to die. The flames that had consumed Neet found no welcome here, instead, only the endless sea and incarnation of Death, wielding her dark sword that dripped with crimson blood.

The demon stalked the corridors of the ship, enjoying the harsh melody of sword and scream, imagining each was a Wingly that threatened the lives of those dearest to her heart. The Captain and all of the crew were dead, along with a few knights. All that was left is was the Commander and most of his knights, the nanny, and the Moon Child herself. She came to a locked door. With an ever-so-slightly insane chuckle, the door exploded inwards, shocking all of the knights inside. All but five of the knights were dead without knowing who was attacking them, and the remaining knights died a split second after they glimpsed her face. The princess's nanny, hearing the commotion, opened the door to Louvia's room and was greeted by a roomful of bodies and the grim visage of the Black Monster. She only had time to scream in horror before she, too, was impaled on the demon's bloodstained sword. The sword missed the woman's heart by a hair, however, and she uttered two words before Death claimed her; "Princess...Lou...via...."

A look full of contempt followed that. "Don't worry, she's coming soon. You won't be apart for long." She walked into the room where the Moon Child was sleeping so peacefully. A sphere of pure dark energy formed in the Darkness Dragoon's hand, and was flung into the Child's cradle, completely obliterating this incarnation of the God of Destruction. "My task is done here." With this single sentence, the demon retreated far into Rose's mind, and faded into obscurity. Rose walked calmly out onto the deck, spread her sunset wings, and flew away into the western sky.

~*End of Part Two – Watery Grave of the St. Louvia*~

AN: Blah. That took me forever, I know. Well, in any case, I changed my mind. This is going to be a FOUR-parter. These two parts, plus two covering Rose from the very beginning of the game to Hoax. Wheee. Next chapter: Forgotten Winds! Read, review, and enjoy, please.


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